Threats against Australian schools dismissed as hoax

Sydney, Feb 2: Recent threats made to Australian schools has been dismissed by police as hoax calls from overseas “designed to cause unnecessary disruption”, authorities said on Tuesday. New South Wales (NSW) police dismissed the threats against the state’s schools as nothing other than hoaxes designed to cause disruption and garner media attention, Xinhua news agency reported. “The threats appear to come from overseas with no credible evidence they could be carried out here,” NSW police said in a statement. Schools in NSW state were being searched by police for the third consecutive day while schools in Queensland state were also being evacuated after threatening phone calls were received on Tuesday morning. Schools were put into lockdown on Monday while both NSW and Victorian students were evacuated on January 29 following multiple phone threats to local, interstate and overseas schools. Queensland state Premier Anstacia Palaszczuk said she had only prelimiry advice on the school closures, but noting police are taking the issue “extremely seriously”.(IANS)